Nerves are synonymous with games of this magnitude, but there didn’t appear to be any in the Spanish ranks in the opening stages, as a front-footed approach almost yielded an opener. Teenage prodigy Lamine Yamal was the architect, opening a yard in an inside right position before his deflected effort needed to be repelled by the legs of Emiliano Martinez.
That aside, there were no chances of note in the opening half-hour, with the main talking point amid some controversial refereeing decisions being a full-blooded Alexis Mac Allister challenge on Dani Olmo, which didn’t yield a card, much to the Spaniards’ dismay.
Martinez was certainly the busier of the two shot stoppers in the first half, albeit all his work was routine, diving low to his left five minutes before half-time to comfortably gather Mikel Oyarzabal’s effort from distance.
A Marc Cucurella effort which whistled narrowly wide of the target on the stroke of half-time almost perfectly encapsulated a cagey opening 45 minutes which saw a World Cup final record-low three first-half shots.
As if the tepid first-half showing wasn’t enough, a world-first half-time show at a World Cup final extended the wait for FIFA’s #1 and #2-ranked sides to correct the course.
Kermit may have made a quick cameo, but Martinez was almost left feeling like the biggest muppet of all in the 64th minute, when he spilt Olmo’s shot from distance, but fortunately for him, the Argentine stopper managed to fumble it just wide of the post.
Martinez continued to be in the thick of the action, producing another smart stop moments later to gather Ferran Torres’ header from close range, and it was just as well that he was standing firm as Spanish pressure intensified.
The unlikely source of Pau Cubarsi was next to test his resistance, unleashing a powerful strike from distance which Martinez beat away.
The game took a huge turn inside second-half stoppage time when, after receiving a petulant yellow card for dissent, Enzo Fernandez became just the sixth player to be sent off in a World Cup final when his late challenge on Cubarsi earned him a second booking and subsequent red card.
A late Martinez save denied Yamal a winner with almost the last kick of the final and forced extra time, though playing a man light didn’t bode well for an Argentine side who became the first in World Cup final history to fail to register a single shot in 90 minutes.
Spain’s Nico Williams thought he’d dashed La Albiceleste's hopes further five minutes into extra-time when he reacted quickest to fire into an empty net only to see his celebrations cut short after referee Slavko Vincic spotted a foul from Mikel Merino on Nicolas Otamendi in the build-up.
But Argentine resistance was eventually broken after 106 minutes, when Torres was alert inside the area, latching onto Williams’ knockdown and powering an effort into the roof of the net.
That secured Spain a sixth victory in seven major tournament finals, while leaving Argentina and Messi – who failed to build on their 2022 final triumph and become the first side in 64 years to defend the World Cup – to ponder what could’ve been in what was likely his last international appearance.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Rodri (Spain)
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